IHS SAYS GLOBAL LCD TV PANEL SHIPMENTS FELL TO 58M UNITS IN 3Q

(The following press release from IHS Inc. was received by e-mail. The
sender verified the statement.)
In a First for the Industry, LCD TV Panel Shipments Dip in Q3
El Segundo, Calif. (Oct. 4, 2013)—For the first time ever, the global market
for liquid-crystal display television (LCD TV) panels declined in the third
quarter of 2013 compared to the second, a worrisome development during what is
normally a strong period of the year.
Worldwide LCD TV panel shipments in a preliminary estimate during the third
quarter amounted to 58.0 million units, down from 58.8 million in the second
quarter, according to a new LCD Market Tracker report from IHS Inc. (NYSE:
IHS), a leading global source of critical information and insight. Last year,
third-quarter shipments totaled 60.0 million, up markedly from 54.5 million
during the previous quarter.
The attached figure presents the IHS estimate of the LCD-TV panel shipments in
the third quarter.
“LCD TV panel shipments went through a soft period in the third quarter,” said
Ricky Park, senior manager for large-area displays at IHS. “The downshifting of
the market comes as a surprise because the third quarter is usually a time when
things start heating up, in preparation for the furious upcoming fourth-quarter
selling season. However, consumers have not been buying as many new television
sets as originally hoped, leaving TV brands with panels that they haven’t been
able to move.”
The stockpiles held by brands have been aggravated in particular by the large
panel shipments made to them by LCD TV panel makers during the first half of
the year.
China turns off TV
The weak third-quarter numbers will be especially hard on panel makers that
serve Chinese TV brands. TV sales in China have been on the decline since the
end of the second quarter, and sales are not expected to improve much despite
the upcoming China National Day in October. Among the panel makers affected by
this turn of events are Innolux and AUO of Taiwan, both of which suffered a
fourth month of declining shipments during July.
Some other panel makers, however, are having a better time. One Chinese-based
maker, CSOT, is maintaining healthy inventory even though it has the highest
portion of Chinese customers for TV panel shipments, thanks to an expansion in
its client base that includes, the largest TV brand in sales, Samsung from
South Korea.
Overall, panel suppliers whose main customers are outside of China will also
enjoy relatively better prospects than panel makers whose main clientele are
the Chinese. For instance, makers like Samsung Display and Japan’s Sharp, with
the lowest percentage of Chinese TV brands as customers, will see their share
of the LCD TV panel market enlarge in the third quarter.
Panel makers kept overall fab utilization rates at 83 to 84 percent in the
third quarter, not too far off from the 80 to 83 percent level seen in the
second quarter. Utilization rates, however, are not likely to increase moving
forward because of uncertainty in the fourth quarter, coupled with continuing
weak demand from the market.
BOE stands out
Among panel makers, Beijing-based BOE was the one to have increased shipments
in July. Top-tier brands like Samsung and LG were among the panel buyers that
increased their purchasing volume from BOE during the month.
(rml) NY